It's Always the Quiet Ones
by Xxkitsunei-chanxX
Summary: The life of a SeeD Instructor has never been easy and Seifer knows that best. However every teacher has that one student who makes their lives ten times worse and sometimes it can be the one you least expect. It's always the quiet ones that are the bad ones.
1. Prologue

A/N: A little story I've thought up and decided to write instead of doing revision. It will be ridiculously cheesy but I promise to try and write it well!

* * *

Those little hiccups in life that slowly get larger and larger until it feels like you hit a speed bump too hard. Yeah, I was having one of those moments right now. My whole life had been balanced on the head of a pin wobbling dangerously because of a young boy who blows at it capriciously, not realising that one puff could have me falling into and endless pit of despair. And the worst thing about this was that I unknowingly put myself into this situation.

My fate stared wide eyed at me, halfway through the door of the cheap Balamb hotel bedroom. Bright blue eyes tucked away behind black-rimmed glasses dodged my hungover gaze and then they were gone and I was left with the view of a 'Do Not Disturb' sign hanging on the coat hook of the carved door.


	2. Chapter 1

A/N: A blast to the past with this chapter. Here is when the story actually begins! I'm not going to divulge the story but I hope it is to your liking! OH! Also I will be describing Zell's appearance different to that in the game but it is with good reason.

* * *

A new year. A New collection of annoying seventeen year-old horny students who I couldn't give a rat's ass about. I'm paid a ridiculously good salary to get them out into the action and I will do just that. Nothing more and nothing less. There will be no special treatment for any of them. If they fail they fail they can suck it up and either try again or go and work as a farm hand in Winhill.

I made sure my desk was organised messily. I didn't want to come across as one of those instructors like Trepe who grade tests in the blink of an eye because I was too fucking lazy for that, but it was presentable enough that I didn't seem like that bimbo Selphie who students took advantage and she didn't have the slightest idea they were doing so. No, I was being Seifer Almasy, the 'cool' teacher that by the end of the year everyone hated because they realised that I was harsher than Trepe and more demanding than Selphie would ever be. Oh yes, by the end of the year every single one of them would hate me and I will revel in the dissatisfaction.

My board had my three rules up on display: no complaining, no eating or drinking and most importantly, no 'sassing' the teacher. If they think I will tolerate any of their shit then they'll soon change their minds when my foot has kicked them so far up they ass they won't be able to sit down for three weeks. The rules had worked every year. One person would break a rule within the first week and then they would be upheld for the rest of the year. I'd even received Instructor of the Year for my excellent results, a feat that irritated Trepe because I broke her winning streak. That was a good year.

I gave the empty room one last glance over. I'll miss it being this empty.

Time to introduce myself. The door slid open with a whoosh and the eager smiles of every single recruit dropped. I had a few groans from the back and the whispers started, most likely about my cruel streak or how much of an ass hole I am. Good to know I hadn't lost my charm. Some of the girls were even checking me out and one guy did as well. No, I definitely hadn't lost my charm.

"Go in and sit down. Your names have been assigned to a seat randomly, if you end up near a friend good for you if not then you can suck it up because I don't care." One by one they trudged through the door until the last person, the checking-me-out guy, had gone in and found their seat. There was the awkward squeak of leather as everyone settled down and unfortunately for me the majority seemed to be seated with a friend, judging by the incessant chatter.

A quick slam of the hand on the desk silenced them. They all looked at the front and I gave them a quick moment to read over the rules of the class.

"I'm sure you've read my rules and I ain't going through them because they're pretty self-explanatory. Any other questions?" The question lingered in the air for a moment. "Right then. I'll give you all your timetables. You know which art you majored in so if it's wrong don't hesitate to tell me because I will get it sorted out for you. Any of you who have double majors please come and see me at the end as we'll have to arrange out-of-hours tutoring for the lessons you will miss with me. Now do you have any questions?"

A flurry of hands shot up. Most of the problems were people having the wrong majors on their timetables as expected with a few other minor issues such as them having no assigned dormitory or not knowing where off-campus lesson were held.

"Now everyone's sorted we'll begin with introductions. I'm Seifer Almasy your instructor for the year, I majored in short range weaponry with a specialist award in Gunblades and my hobby is baking..." A few sniggers resounded around the classroom, mainly from the boys. "And I like making apple tarts. Now follow that format and _hopefully_ we'll learn something new about each other."

One by one they each took turn to stand up and present themselves to the class when I pointed at them. The majority fumbled about with their words, scared of speaking in front of so many new people. I heard some interesting hobbies like Triple Triad enthusiasts and I even had a train spotter.

"My name is Rinoa Heartilly." A girl who spoke with confidence for once. "And I'm majoring in medium-range weaponry focusing on projectiles. My hobby is dog handling and I use my dog in battle." This girl was certainly unique. Must make a mental note to keep an eye on her, she'll probably score high in the practical assessments.

A few more uninteresting students until it came to checking-me-out boy. He stood up and looked down, hiding his eyes behind the black-rimmed glasses and blonde hair that swept down across his face. He mumbled for a few seconds and then sat back down in his chair with the whole class looking at him with confusion. The next person was about to stand up and talk but I stopped them and got up from behind my desk. The boy continued to look down at his desk, not looking up until my feet were in his line of vision. I walked behind him and grabbed both arms, picking him up and placed him on his feet roughly.

"I, nor the class, heard a word you said. You have one more chance." He fumbled about for a second clearly confused by the man-handling.

"My n-name..." He mumbled again but this time I jabbed him sharply in the middle of the spine. "My name is Zell Dincht and I'm majoring in short range weaponry, specifically martial arts and also monster indexing. My hoby is Turbo-Boarding." He immediately sat down, a light tinge of pink to his cheeks from nervous pressure.

"Carry on with the introductions."

The rest of the class finished up and by the end of it people who had similar hobbies were eyeing each other across the room, sharing furtive glances with each other. I had a good mix of majors in my class unlike last year when I was stuck with the majority of long-range majors who seemed to think that was my speciality despite me repeatedly telling them it wasn't.

"Right, let's get down to business. We have half a lesson left so we'll start with the basics of magic." I wrote about the mechanics of 'drawing' magic from an enemy on the board. A few started to copy down notes and eventually the majority of the class got the idea that it was up to them what they write down or do not write down. I started to draw a diagram of the 'draw points' of the body and I heard a few sighs from the people who obviously couldn't sketch well. When I finished I turned around and allowed a minute for them to finish their notes.

"The most basic function of magic is drawing it from the enemy. Every person has five points called 'draw points' through which we can collect and store magic. We have one on each palm, one on our forehead, one at the stomach and one at the back of the neck. Each class of magic is generally absorbed at a different point, with offensive magic having an affinity for the palm points, restorative magic mainly enters through the forehead, debilitating magic enters through the stomach and support magic is stored in the neck."

Some students stared at me blank eyed, clearly in their own little world. Little do they know that I mainly test on what I've said and not what I've written down so they'll be in for a shock.

I turned back to the board and erased the previous work. "Each person has their own affinity for one or two types of magic and they tend to excel in those fields. The affinity is due to a person's nature; certain magic works better with people of certain attitu-"

"That's wrong..."

"Who said that?" I slammed my hand on the board and turned around. My third rule had been broken already and it was now time to set an example for the rest of the class. "I said... Who said that?"

Dincht at the back raised his hand. He was shaking, clearly hoping I hadn't heard the barely audible whisper. He hid his face again.

"Why am I wrong, Mr Dincht?"

"It was thought that affinity was due to a person's nature..." He inhaled deeply. "However Odine recently discovered that it was due to the Guardian Force the person was equipped with as they often share similar natures. It's in our text book." He held up the page to me so I walked over and took a look.

Shit, he was right. I should have read the revised copy.

"I'm sorry class, Dincht is right." I edited my work on the board and carried on with the lesson trying to suppress the anger and embarrassment. I covered a few more topics before letting the class go a few minutes early. They quickly made their friend huddles as they walked out the door, chattering and complaining about me most likely. Dincht tried to make his dash from the room.

"Zell, a moment please." A few 'oohs' came from the remaining students as they left the room. When everyone had left I stood up and leaned against one of the student desks.

"You're not in trouble. However since you're so smart you should have remembered that I asked all double majors to stay back at the end because I need to sort out extra tutoring for you for the lessons you will miss with me." He sighed in relief. His tense shoulders relaxed and dropped and he fixed his glasses which shifted when he scrunched his eyes with worry.

I was still a little surprised by the fact that someone like him was majoring in martial arts as their fighting skill. He was scrawny, looked anaemic and truth be told the girls doing the same major had more muscle mass that he would probably ever have. His arms were pale and blubbery with baby fat and he only about five-foot-six so he couldn't have much leverage to his swing. I would have said he was a long-range major if anything.

"Excuse me, Sir. I asked what time was best for you."

"Sorry, I spaced out for a minute there. And don't call me 'Sir', I'm only twenty-five for God's sake." I grabbed my planner from the desk. "Since you're my only double major this year we can do it immediately after school hours, otherwise I'm free up until six in the evening but I'd prefer if you didn't leave it so late as I do have a life, you know."

He looked down and smiled, clearly amused by the friendly teacher act I was putting on. Even though I do like to scare the living daylights out of my students, I think this one was already enough of a nervous wreck to begin with. I decided to have a little fun however when he started writing in my planner. He was leant slightly over one of the desks to write so I enclosed him in from behind and looked over his shoulder, making sure to lean as close as possible against his back.

"Good, all straight after we finish for the day. Which subject do you want to do in out tutor sessions? I'd choose your worst since I'll be able to give you more help in it." I stepped away from him so he had room to breathe again. He had gone stiff again and the light blush had returned. This kid would be definitely fun to play with. I'd even date him if he were at least three years older but I'm not into teenagers.

"P-practical magic."

"Alright then. We'll start next week." He nodded and gave me my planner before starting his waddle out the room. As he got to the door I shouted him. "And if you try that shit again, let's just say that you better be good at running, chicken-wuss."

His face blew up with anger and went red as he walked out the class.

"Don't call me chicken-wuss!"

A/N: I know this chapter was both short and slow to start off with but trust me it will get better and Seifer will have to go back on his words!


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: A big thank you if you have come this far! Still on the build up to the rest of the story yet but a little more goes on in this chapter.

* * *

"Fuck! Hang on a second Quis, got to put the phone down my tart's burning."

"I swear, Seifer Almasy. You'll get fa-" I placed the phone down on the side, trying to drown out the electric hum of Quistis' voice while I pulled my beloved tart out of the oven. The apples had overcooked a little on the edges but otherwise it had come out relatively okay. I set it down on the cake stand so it could cool and then I could enjoy tearing it apart.

"Yeah, yeah. Have I gotten fat yet though?" A tut and a sigh but eventually she yielded and just let out a delicate chuckle before complaining about how her students were a collection of idiots with a few diamonds stuck right within the mud. I sat down at my desk, opening up a piece of work that needed editing, placing the phone next to the computer and put it on loud speaker.

"I have one kid in my class, Squall, and let me tell you he is a major ass with a capital 'A' Seifer. I mean the first lesson in he told me my lessons were boring and that I needed to liven things up a bit." There was a faint scream and a crack of a whip in the distance, then two seconds later it sounded as if something had completely fallen apart.

"Did you break one of the dummies again, Quissy? You know, maybe that's how you could liven your lessons up a bit, by scaring the shit out of them like I do." I put on a haughty tone knowing that advice from me would annoy her in the first place, she responded with another scream and a string of curse words. "I never fail to find it funny, the fact that you always act so composed and then when you're done for the day the true side of you is revealed." I coloured a few slides in on my presentation for tomorrow's lesson on SeeD ethos, kids always seemed to respond well with colour.

"And I _love _how you act tough but in reality you're a big softie." She laughed triumphantly and cracked her whip again. "Plus I heard today that the famous professor himself was corrected by a student on the first day."

"Yeah well I didn't read over the text book amendments over summer."

"Oh so it is true." I swear this woman could be condescending to a person from over a thousand miles away, she had mastered the hubristic tone long ago. "Some 'Zell' kid if I remember the rumours right. He got the highest score on the theory exams, he pretty much aced them from what I read up since I was interested as to who corrected one of our best. I mean he almost reached my score." And there was the hauteur again.

I knew I should have looked at those entry scores, I could've at least prepared myself for some whizz kid chicken-wuss.

"However I looked into his other scores and let's just say that he should never try magic. Ever. He got lower than what Raijin got." Holy shit he did bad. I logged onto the Garden's database and pulled his file up. His theory and battle exams had been aced, but like she said his practical magic assessment was awful.

"Crap! He asked me to do his personal tutoring on practical magic as well since he's a double major. I'm not even that good at magic, I mean I'm decent enough to teach but I don't think I can teach him. He's just untalented." I laughed when I saw the examiner's comment, some part of me filled with humorous dread. "Apparently the fire spell didn't even make it from his body, he just set fire to his hands."

"Looks like you have some work ahead of you." One more crack of the whip came with a masculine shout. "I'm going to have to go now Seifer. And if he's too much trouble you can ask for help." Then she hung up on me without even saying good-bye.

Like hell I'd ask her for help, I'd rather ask Selphie and suffer the migraines. I carried on reading through Zell's file. Other than his high scores there was nothing particularly special about him. His interview had gone, according to Cid, well and was to the standard of any normal candidate. I closed his file then carried on with my work, but I couldn't seem to focus for that long.

I grabbed a slice of my tart and had a scan through the revised text book, just noting any changes since I had the original information memorised.

I wonder whether he'd read all the book yet? Could I push him and have him sit both year's theory exams at once? He certainly seemed capable from his scores. But, I'm worried about the magic.

* * *

Why are these idiots even bothering me? I really needed this, being circled by a bunch of goons who think I'm the perfect target for bullying, most likely because I'm short and look weak. Like hell they'd try it with someone their own size.

"Well then, look at little Dincht, already being a smart-ass prick and it's only the second week." Rinoa Heartilly, the biggest prick known to man with prick mark two Zone and that other one, Watts if that's even right, like I care anyway. "Mr Almasy does not need somebody like you making his job any harder." So that's what the problem was, she had a crush on her male pompous counterpart and I was at fault for him being an idiot and not teaching correctly.

She'd always been like this. She was the rich girl that everyone idolised and wanted to be friends with and if you didn't treat her as a princess, like me, then you became part of the social outcasts because that was the rule of the Heartilly society. I don't think I ever helped my cause; one time I laughed when she got gum stuck in her hair and they had to cut it into a bowl cut just to get it out. I think that was my best memory of her.

"Tell _him_ to teach his class well. Oh wait, hold that thought. I'll tell him now as I have private tutoring with him." I don't think I ever made life easy for myself, but was it hilarious seeing her face balloon up and turn fiery red with anger and envy. She glared at me, really tried to set fire to me with her eyes until she could fathom some form of sentence together.

"You're a waste of time Zell. You act weak and helpless but in reality you're just a shark." She pointed at me and walked over. She jabbed her finger harshly into my chest with that much force behind it, it pushed me back a little. "You hide behind your glasses and pretend to be shy but I know the real you."

And there it was, the all-knowing omniscient act which made her feel like the princess she wasn't. She was so royal that her father sent her to Balamb just so she was out of his hair, or as she claims 'away from dangerous Galbadia'. Like hell she knew the real me. So I pretend to be shy but maybe it's because I don't want to be fucking noticed by people like her who will take advantage of the fact I'm small and try and dominate me. But I wasn't weak and I'm certainly not dumb enough to let them take advantage of me.

She flicked her hair over her shoulder in what she felt was triumph. I'd had enough of her over the years so I let her have her victory. I turned and walked away and walked into one of the busier halls, at least they couldn't get me there. But she still followed me, walked far enough behind me then stopped.

"Zell!" She came running up to me then hugged me, garnering the attention of a few of the people around, but most just carried on with their conversation. "I don't think Mr Almasy is into that like Irvine was, you know, the blow jobs for good grades." Shit! Now everyone in the hall turned and I could feel a burning heat rise in my face. How dare she. She knew that wasn't even true but she knew that the majority of the students here knew about the rumours which she had started because I achieved better than her in all the exams.

Ignore her. Do not hit her. I wanted to run but I couldn't, I had to walk through the hundreds of judging eyes until I was safe and then my legs started to move with no abandon. I could feel the angry pressure building up inside of me, ready to burst out and swallow me whole. I took salvation in one of the bathrooms, dry heaving over the sink while a few tears made it out of me. Fucking weak.

I hated this, not being able to control myself when it's not even true but now they would all remember and I would be in that same situation again in which I can't walk two feet without hearing a 'cheat' or the more imaginative insults of 'cock-sucker' or 'faggot'. It wasn't even that Balamb was a narrow-minded place, it was just the fact that it gave them and excuse for me being better than them.

I cooled down and splashed some water on my face. The make-up covering my tattoo ran a little so I re-applied it and slipped my glasses back on, not wanting to be the Zell that would stand out. I looked at my watch; it had just gone twenty past four which meant I was now extremely late for my first lesson with the great teacher himself. Most of the other students would have cleared off by now, returning home or to the dormitories which meant I wouldn't have to do the walk of shame.

I strolled to the classroom I'd organised to meet Mr Almasy in, not wanting to rush because the worst thing about being late is trying to make up time by running, if you can make it that quick in the first place it makes the other party why you weren't there on time anyway.

* * *

Five minutes late. He's late for our first session which focuses on the part of the entrance exam he fucked up. Don't be angry, maybe he got lost or something. But it has been a week and he's a smart kid so I'm sure he's got a hang of his timetable by now which means that he's either forgot or he's screwing me over and not turning up. However I doubt he'd do that so he's probably just forgotten so I'll wait for him because I am a kind and helpful instructor.

Ten minutes. I may as well get some work done while I wait for him. I bet he's one of those dizzy blondes and he'll get to the entrance of Garden and then turn round and slap himself on the forehead saying 'silly me' and come rushing. I'll mark his work first so we can go through it when he gets here.

Twenty. Minutes. Is he testing my patience? Because I could feel a migraine developing and the bastard got a perfect score so I can even scream and shout about why he needs all the extra help possible. I carried on marking the rest of the class' papers, taking my frustration out of them and my red pen took more than just a beating, it was scribbling, crossing out, putting furious question marks and even writing comments like 'are you an idiot?' until it finally gave in and I had to change the ink cartridge. To top off the anger I was currently feeling I couldn't find a spare cartridge.

I heard the door slide open as I scrambled through the bottom desk of my draw, so I attempted to look up but instead I slammed my head on the underside of the desk further aggravating my migraine and to complement the bang I let out at string of rather strong curses.

"Sorry I'm late." So he finally decided to show and that tone of voice had so little remorse that I even doubted whether he wanted to be here or whether he'd rather be at home doing what kids do these days. He stood half-assed, messenger bag hanging close to his knee. His eyes were slightly red and puffy.

"Have you been crying?" I don't know why I asked but I was still clearly seething as he was taken aback. He regained posture then looked down, hiding his face like usual, then he shook his head to rebuff the idea, his hair tickling his face as he did so. I took that as my cue not to push any further and digressed back to my rage.

"You do realise you are thirty minutes late? I could have left but I waited."

"Well, why didn't you just leave then?" He was still looking down towards the ground but his voice had spark and a little fight in it.

"If you're going to talk back look at me in the eyes." I crossed my arms and challenged the pathetic kid. If he was going to be late then sass me I wanted at least a little bit of fight from him. He glanced upwards swiftly then quickly returned his gaze to the floor, then after thirty seconds or so he started to build his confidence up and looked up at me maintaining weak eye contact.

"I said why didn't you just..." He started off strong but then faltered and lost his voice, his words fading into thin air. I grabbed him by the jaw harshly and forced him to look at me.

"Now I'm not going to say it again. Look at me when you're speaking." He licked his plump lips trying to form words, blue eyes darting left and right until yielding at my gaze and stared into my own.

"Thank you... For waiting. Thanks." Get out of here now Seifer while you still have the chance. I released my grip on is face and shoved him back probably a little bit too hard judging by the fact he almost fell flat on his ass. He resumed his downwards look. I pulled out some books I had ordered for him from the library detailing magic and more importantly, how to use magic.

"I presume you learn better from books." I tossed him 'The Children's Guide to Magic' book. "Look through the 'How to Draw' section and then we'll start." He flipped through the first few pages and sat down at one of the empty desks to read over the section. I looked back after a minute of flicking through one of the books I got from him to see him scratching his head and his forehead creased in frustration.

He followed the lines with his finger, eyes getting narrower and narrower with every word and breaths getting sharper and quicker. He must have read the same part five times before moving on and I couldn't even attempt to suppress the laugh that came out. It earned me a death glare. He stormed up to me and shoved the open book at my chest.

"I don't get it." The petulance was radiating from him.

"How can you not get it?" I pushed the book back to him. "You got the highest score on the theory and you got a perfect score on my introductory test, so why are you so shit at magic?"

"Well I'm sorry! I don't get how you can 'feel' something that's not even physical! Surely you have another way to teach me."

"Give me your hands." Zell gave me an incredulous look before offering me his hands. I grabbed them in a death lock. "Now I'm going to cast fire and if you don't stop me I'm going to burn us both so you better learn to draw quickly."

"Stop it! We'll burn! I can't do it- I can't." He panicked and tried to pull his hands away, but I gripped harder and smiled. He saw my hands start to glow slightly and increased his pulling force but I wasn't letting him go. "Stop!"

The glowing around my hands died and the light moved towards his hands until it disappeared, absorbed by his body. He stared with shock at his own hands then started laughing nervously before falling to the ground, his knees failing to hold the weight of the experience. I knelt down beside him.

"I wasn't really going to do it you know, but I'm glad it worked." I flashed him a toothy grin but instead of being happy he punched me in the arm.

"You ass! I was really scared; I thought I was going to die." He started laughing and I found myself joining in until we we're roaring and the classroom was shaking in joy with us. I helped him up off the ground and we came down from our high.

"Well, we'll carry on with this tomorrow because I really want to go home."

"Okay." We grabbed our bags and headed for the door together. We got in the lift down to the first floor, sharing the uncomfortable silence even life partners feel when they're trapped in a three-feet wide box with about an inch between them and no breathing space. We got out and headed our separate ways, him to Balamb and I went off to the dorms.

" Mr Almasy." He called my name when we were about fifty metres apart. "I've changed my mind. Maybe you're not such a bad teacher after all."

The little chicken-wuss. "Zell. Call me Seifer in future, or next time I will burn you."

He waved to me as he left through the turn-gate, blonde hair fading into the evening sun. I think I may have found a student I actually like for once.

A/N: So it begins. I promise you we actually get some drama next chapter, I mean what I gave with Zell this chapter was just a little taste of what is to come. Plus I will get more of a backstory and a Zell POV going on but for now we're stuck with sarcastic Seifer!


	4. Chapter 3

_Stairs. There was an endless set of stairs before my eyes and I forever climbed up them searching for an end that I would never find. Each step shone a different colour; some were a calm blue and others were a safe and pastoral green, but the red steps scared me. They aggravated my heart and cracked under my foot step. They screamed danger and I feared that one would just give up and let me fall back down to the bottom of the endless climb, wherever that may be._

_I wanted to stop running but something compelled me up higher and higher and soon the steps grew further apart, causing me to jump and leap, scrambling on thin plates to save myself. Whenever I tried to look back leering red eyes would be only two steps behind me, they were disembodied but there was something there. I just didn't know what. Then my fear caught up with me, the staircase ended and I was left teetering on the final scarlet step, shaking at the shroud with the cold whips of harsh wind trying to send me flying over the edge._

_The eyes kept their distance. Two steps. I stared as they changed colour from fiery red, cooling rapidly to a grey and then regaining some of their life and a blue mixed with the grey to give an empty shade of blue, and around those eyes a translucent form, a recognisable figure, grew but only achieved a half corporeal state. The ghost was blown away by the wind and the eyes changed again, this time becoming a vibrant and energetic blue that I could recognise from their temperament alone._

_Seifer._

_His body melded to the eyes, shaping itself from the steps below, all morphing together to make a physical embodiment; a perfect replica. All the light now disappeared and we were surrounded by darkness, only the four steps to provide some radiance for us. He stepped closer. The platform dropped and fell, disappearing out of sight but never making a crash to permeate the silence. There was but one holding between us and I could feel my heart begin to race as his foot edged towards it, slowly moving as if pushing through time itself. Now it was just me and him. Two red steps. He reached out his arms towards me, hands open, ready to grab. Then his speed changed and before I could react there was a harsh jab to my chest and I was sent toppling._

_I didn't fear the fall. No panic. But something quivered in my soul when I looked up and in the fading light the red eyes drifted eerily away. Seifer's body had all but vanished. The ground must be getting closer. Soon I will hit the bottom._

The harsh tone of my alarm clock dragged me out of my haze into the morning dizziness that the majority of people needed to combat with. I waved my hand around, slapping the bedside table a few times before hitting the off button of the clock with sloppy accuracy. Morning was an event that came too often; it was an ordeal that if you were lucky you could sleep through it. But I had to go to Garden.

I pushed my upper half off the bed and swung my legs from under the covers, manoeuvring myself into a seated position on the edge of my bed. My feet had grown accustomed to the chill of the oak floor, but I still wrapped the white duvet around myself, covering my exposed upper half. I padded over to the window overlooking the sea. A mild breeze agitated the water and some birds hovered in the air, staying stationary as they pushed against the wind.

I threw the duvet back on the bed and followed my morning routine: shower, brush teeth, style my hair then cover my tattoo. I thought it made me look cool but apparently it's too daunting and would most likely get me kicked out of Garden, according to Ma'. She taught me how to hide it and I just fell into the routine, it helped keep my profile on the down low and right now with Rinoa on my back, and that is exactly how I wanted it to stay.

The crisp air of Balamb would always truly wake me up in the morning and thus I would walk or ride my T-board to the Garden rather than drive. The grasslands outside the town were pastoral; farmers would utilise the land close to their homes since there were very few monster attacks and the majority of the citizens could take them on since they were relatively weak. The stronger species were kept under control by SeeD and the monster population was always watched closely.

I decided to detour and walked to the beach just east of the harbour, enjoying the salty taste of the sea air. I took my shoes off and waded in the warm water, just letting the waves ripple against my feet. Monsters combed the beach but most would ignore you, in fact some had become relatively domesticated as summer had just been and they had learnt to coexist with humans as we used the shores.

I looked at the small watch on my wrist, hoping I would have more time to spend doing nothing, but the hands told me that if I didn't hurry I would be late, so I let my feet dry off as I headed to the Garden, then put my shoes back once I could see the gates. Most of the student loitered around the gates despite living at the Garden and not have to commute, it had become the social gathering for the more popular people and the gates themselves were only outshone by the Quad for being the most popular meeting place.

I myself preferred the library; it offered solitude and quiet and most importantly, I was away from whomever may seek to disturb me. I'd even found a friend there, a girl who volunteered there. I think she'd slowly developed a crush on me the two weeks I'd been here and would often recommend books she thought I would like, proving she'd at least looked at what I'd previously been reading.

As I entered the Garden I gained a few stares and a couple of whispers. Clearly the rumour Rinoa had started a week ago had spread and like any 'Chinese Whisper' it will have developed into some ridiculous hyperbole, probably me having a rough bondage relationship with a rich old man. I must admit, if that wasn't a variant yet I was ever so tempted to share the idea myself, just to see how many people truly believed it. To think I had become a household name within two weeks.

My first lesson of the day was my monster indexing major, which meant two hours spent with the demoralising Instructor Aki. Apparently I was his prized pupil yet he still scolded me regularly, however it was much less frequent than the rest of the class which he deemed to be slackers. The majority of the lesson was simply learning a few recorded species of monster with some theory on categorisation and identification thrown in.

I tried to focus but my mind started wandering back to the dream. It had been unique and memorable, a pair of floating red eyes and a staircase. But what stuck in my mind most was the fact Mr Almasy appeared. It could just be my most recent memories as he was one of the last of the people I saw in the day, the only other being Ma' and I had been seeing him on a regular basis. But it still doesn't account for him feeling so... _Real._

"Dincht, I asked you what is the common name for the monster belonging to the Testudinidae family native to Dollet." I received a soul thrashing stare from Instructor Aki, who was clearly annoyed as I had obviously missed the first time he had asked me the question.

"The adamantioise, known for having a high defence." I answered confidently, having already memorised the majority of the Dollet native monsters.

"Thank you Zell. Although I only asked for the name." He turned back to the board again. "Nobody likes a know-it-all."

My cheeks burned with embarrassment and pride. I looked down at my work and ignored the couple of chuckles that resounded around the room. By the time the lesson had finished every student had been worn away slowly by Aki, leaving the room trudging one behind the other. Aki looked pleased with himself as he did at the end of every session, clearly enjoying his job of killing the morale and spirit of his students.

My next lesson was with Seifer; my group combat training, which was an event in itself.

* * *

The majority of my students had now assembled at the entrance of the training centre, with the rest not far down the hall just strolling to the lesson, unaware of the punishments of being late. I had my class of short range fighters, which contained only one gunblade user, Squall, who was the double major under Quistis. I had a majority of mages who thought protect was enough to defend themselves, not realising they needed the basic self-defence knowledge so they wouldn't be sliced in two. Monsters unfortunately don't take exception because you're proficient with magic.

I walked the group to the river area, showing them the draw point nearby and made sure all were properly equipped with SeeD grade weaponry before letting the monsters loose. The main proportion of the monsters were low-level Grats with a few Caterchipillar for the stronger students.

"Today's lesson will focus on the importance of environment when it comes to attack and defence." I had the attention of the majority of the girls and a couple of the boys, but the rest of the boys played with their weapons; they made sword slashed in the ground or tried to balance the hammers on one finger. "Whenever you can put distance between yourself and a monster, do it. That's especially important for the mages but taking monsters head on is unwise. Learn how to use your surroundings."

At this point I allowed them to move to the edge of the island we were on. The bridges were up so no monsters could reach us, so they used that safety to scout the training centre and try and find the better spots for battling.

"Can we fight now?" The mellow and low tone, as well as the forwardness of the question, let me know Squall was becoming bored. He was a natural fighter, already much more proficient with his weapon than his peers were with theirs. He almost reminded me of myself.

I patted Squall on the back and pulled him close. "Squall is going to be our demonstration today. He will show us how to use the environment tactically. He will use the river in any manner he sees fit." I enjoyed pushing him. Although he wasn't my pupil and unfortunately I wouldn't receive the credit, I still wanted him to make a fine SeeD who could be trusted on missions to lead his team to success.

I lowered one of the bridges for him, pulling it back up after he had crossed. He attracted the attention of a Grat that was wandering around alone by aiming a well used fire against it. After he got the attention of the Grat he would hack at it, drawing back with each slash of his gunblade until he was at the riverbank. At that point he turned his back to the monster and waded through the river back to our island, the monster attempting to follow him. Some of the students began to move back or even outright tell him to stay away, but I allowed him to carry on, knowing he had something up his sleeve.

At that point he summoned the guardian force Quetzalcoatl, having it cast a devastating bolt of lightning into the river, completely burning up the monster. The Grat ended up being swept away by the water, where it would be diced into pieces by the water purifier.

"Well done, Squall!" I praised the boy, but kept my distance as he was drenched from the waist down. "He showed us how to use the environment tactically and efficiently. However I don't want everyone in the river casting thunder. Be original." At that point I let them go off on their own, periodically switching between the students to make sure they were safe and correcting their postures or moves as they fought.

Zell was on his own fighting a Caterchipillar. He would never team up with any of the other class members. In fact I hadn't noticed him talking to anybody at all. He had quickly become an outcast of the class, with most of the students not wanting to talk to him and I believed the feeling was mutual. I stood next to him as he parried and swung, drawing my gunblade and slashing, pushing the monster back to give him a break.

"Thanks." His voice was breathy and his face was flushed beet red. I allowed him to land a few more punches until I killed the enemy with a finishing blow, barely breaking a sweat. I turned to him, expecting him to be impressed but instead I received scorn. He stormed away and grabbed a bottle of water, taking a mouthful before returning the cap and pressing the cool bottle to his head.

"You need to learn to work in a team, Zell." He snubbed me, turning away from me and carried on cooling himself with the bottle. I walked over, grabbed a bottle and poured it down the back of his uniform. Some of the students who had finished their fights had noticed and laughed as he jumped forwards. He would learn his lesson for ignoring me, especially when we were in a student-teacher setting.

"Don't ignore me next time then. Plus I would work on your posture; you raise your arms too high preventing a good momentum and your legs are too far apart." He nodded at me, clearly not listening. He was quickly becoming a problem child despite his potential. "Also you need to drop the attitude and build some muscle. If you're doing martial arts as your major then you need to be physically stronger."

"Yes, Mr Almasy." His voice still had some element of defiance but he had realised I wasn't joking and took me more seriously. I was his teacher and not his friend. I want to keep a close relationship with my students but one thing I will not let them do is walk all over me.

"T-Rexaur!" The panicked scream grabbed my attention and I turned to the girl who was pointing to the hulking monster storming towards the group.

"Shit. Everybody get back! Squall! Zell! Come with me." The two boys ran up to the side of me while the rest of the class retreated to a safe viewing distance. The monster stopped before us and let out a bestial roar, the air vibrating wildly from the sheer volume. "Zell, you have Shiva junctioned, right?" I turned to him and he nodded. "Good. T-rexaurs are weak to ice-based attacks. Squall and I will cover you while you summon."

Zell flipped back and started to call Shiva. The T-rexaur instantly sensed the icy presence that started to envelope Zell and made a dive for him. I dove in front of the monster, putting myself between the two of them. My blade hit the scaly shell of its head and bounced off, only inflicting minor damage but the enemy still recoiled, enough so that Squall could land a well aimed slash at its neck and send it toppling on its side.

An icicle shot up from the ground in front of Zell and Shiva's figure began to form in it. Once she had morphed into the ice, the pillar shattered into diamond dust and filled the air with sparkling particles. Shiva blasted the fallen monster and encased it in a layer of ice which then shattered, cracking the T-rexaur into a thousand tiny pieces. The summon then melted back into the ground, the air instantly warming.

"Good." That was... relieving. "You did good, boys. Everyone, use these two as an example for the standard you should be aiming for." I turned towards the huddle which had now descended into chatter, most indicating their relief that they were no longer at risk of being harmed. Since most of the kids had been shook up by the event, I rounded the lesson to an end and had them summarise what they had learned verbally to one another then relay it to myself. Squall and Zell teamed together, both not really talking much but I was glad that Zell had made some sort of... _friend, _using the idea loosely. He and Squall would make a good pair: They favoured contrasting elements, had different fighting styles and had somewhat matching personalities. Hell, they would probably make a good couple.

As everyone walked out of the training centre together, the duo stuck together and talked, almost shoulder to shoulder. I couldn't help myself, I felt enchanted in the way that something really bugged you like an itch but the feeling was so peculiar that instead of doing something you just let it carry on and try and understand it. Squall must have said something funny as Zell laughed and shoved him in the arm, causing the other to smile, something I'd never seen before.

I distracted myself by enacting my report to Cid in my head, making sure I had my words ready and in order. I took the elevator up to the top floor and knocked on the large doors into his office, waiting for his call. He shouted me in and I found Quistis was already in there.

"Seifer, what a pleasant surprise. How can I help you?" Cid had always been a well-mannered man, ever since he adopted us with his wife Edea. Quistis was adopted by them at an older age than I was, inheriting the name of Trepe from her original set of adoptive parents, however her relationship with them did not quite blossom, she never told us why though.

"A T-rexaur escaped as I was training my first-year class. I was concerned since they have the strongest gates and I've never heard of it happening before."

"Hmm. That is rather odd. I'll have the Garden Faculty see if one of the gate has acquired any damage. If that's all, you both may leave now."

"But!" Quistis tried to interject but Cid wouldn't let her say what she wanted to, he just quieted her with a raised hand, causing her face to crinkle with stress. She stormed out of the room in the calmest possible manner as Cid was still our boos and his word was final. I followed her out and back into the elevator, disappointed my practice report hadn't been put to use. However that was quickly subdued by the fact the elevator had now become a tiny box with an angry elephant and myself stuffed inside of it.

"What did you go and see Cid for?"

She sighed, took off her glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I went to tell him that after this year, I am quitting being an instructor and returning to the field." I didn't really know how to respond. I was surprised, and judging by her wry laugh, my face gave it away. "Cid had the exact same expression. He tried to talk me out of it by proclaiming how great my results are and even banned me from doing it when he realised I wasn't backing down. But I am serious, this is my last year of teaching."

"I thought you would have been the last one to go." I rambled, my mutterings just audible for her to hear. "I mean, you're good with the kids, but me, I'm just an angry old man."

"You're better than what you think, Seifer. I mean, hey, you beat me once." She praised me, if somewhat reluctantly, but it had merit if it was coming from her. She smiled at me then stepped out of the lift, walking away to one of her classes.

* * *

"Seifer!" He had informed me at the last lesson that we'd be learning to draw from monsters, so we were going onto the Balamb Plains thus I had to meet him at the gates to the Garden. One or two students remained but took no interest in me. I couldn't see Seifer so I stood in front of the draw point, calmed by the harmonious jingle that every draw point displayed. I was just about relaxed when a large roar came from behind me and something grabbed my the sides of my arms. My natural response was to swing my leg up and kick over my shoulder, but I regretted it when the joker turned out to be the mysterious man himself.

"Mr Almasy I am so sorry." I patted his back as he covered his face. My boots must have connected with his nose and that was affirmed when he moved his hands away to reveal blood dripping down his face. I grabbed some tissues out of my bag, offering them to him and helped him clean up his face. I wiped under his chin as he held his head back to stop the bleeding, my hand tingling as it caught the light blonde stubble.

"Well, I won't be trying that again." His voice was nasally but still, thankfully, laced with humour so I knew I was off the hook. "Once I stop bleeding we'll go out onto the plains." He laughed and rubbed my shoulder, letting me know he was fine. Nevertheless I still apologised repeatedly while we waited for the bleeding to stop.

We marched out onto the plains together. I kept my distance from him in case he tried to pull another stunt in revenge for me almost breaking his nose, despite him having forgiven me. When we reached the grass, I instinctively took off my socks and shoes which earned me a laugh but a stare from Seifer. I blushed and went to put them back on.

"Leave them off." He smiled and took off his boots, joining me in the club of naked feet. I stood in front of him and looked down.

"You have really big feet."

"Well you know what they say about people with big feet..." He looked me in the eye then winked. I could feel myself burning up with embarrassment and turned away from him, my hands covering my face as I laughed. "I was going to say 'they have big boots' but clearly you thought of something much funnier." He whispered in my ear as I had my back turned to him then poked me in the sides until I collapsed onto the grass.

"Stop!" I scuttled away from him, still laughing. "You're supposed to be an instructor! Why are you so cool? Be more like Aki!" I pointed my finger at him and he feigned insult, acting over-dramatic. He plodded over to the side of me and sat down, rubbing his hands across the soft ground.

"This is the youngest I've felt in years." Seifer smiled at me, a toothy grin which made the sides of his eyes wrinkle up. He had a beautiful face, especially when he smiled. "We do actually have to do something, you know." I sighed and held my hands up in resignation, proceeding to stand up and brush leaves off myself. Seifer did the same then we went on the hunt for a monster.

A bite bug was hovering around not far from where we were, so we went close enough to catch it's attention but not so much threaten it.

"Right, now I want you to use what I've shown you and draw some scans from the monster. It'll attract the attention of the bite bug, but I'll be protecting you so don't worry." Seifer reassured me, but I still felt hesitant. He stood just in front of me to guard me, and I raised my fist and rested my other hand on my bicep. I tried to draw magic, but I couldn't get a grasp on it which left the two of us stood there awkwardly for a minute or so.

"I can't do it." I felt defeated and deflated. Seifer walked back over to me and around the back of me.

"Just relax." He wrapped his arms around me, one hand resting on my shoulder and one covered my fist. "Just relax and feel the magic. I'm here. You won't get hurt." The magic started to flow and I grasped it, drawing magic from the bug.

"I think I love you."

* * *

A/N: Sorry I didn't update for two weeks guys. I started this at the most inappropriate time, in the middle of my exams. However I am going to try and update weekly maybe bi-weekly if it's not a good week or I'm just lazy like usual. However I hoped you like the chapter and if you've gotten to this A/N then I would like to thank you for reading the whole story so far.

P.S I tried to put this up last night but fanfiction was messed up


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